The Oak Park Board of Trustees has approved spending $1.2 million to resurface the parking lot at village hall, 123 Madison St., and install 10 electric car-charging stations for public use.

Trustees unanimously approved the contract with Alliance Contractors Inc., the only company to submit a bid. Trustee Andrea Button was absent.

The project also includes new lighting, repairs to the basement-garage, landscaping, and beautification of the plaza.

"While the project is being bid this year the construction would not occur until the spring of 2019," Village Manager Cara Pavlicek told trustees at the Oct. 1 meeting. "We have a number of busy activities this fall including early voting that occurs at village hall."

Village Engineer John Wielebnicki called the project a "reconstruction" of the lot where village employees and police vehicles park.

He said it has been a so long since the lot was resurfaced, village planners were "picking our brain to figure out the last time it was rebuilt."

He said many of the trees around the parking lot have been removed over the years "and while they look nice and green right now there's a lot of dead wood in there, and they're about due for a replacement."

"There is some structural work that will be going in over the underground parking area," he said.

According to a memo to the village board repairs to the south portion of the basement/garage area "will disturb a large portion of the current plaza area which is proposed to be beautified with installation of hexagon unit pavers throughout, decorative planters, new trees, and the addition of street-furniture to make the space more inviting and a place for residents and staff to meet."

The electrical vehicle-charging stations will be available to village vehicles as well as the public, Wielelbnicki said.

The structural repairs to the underground parking garage are a continuation of a project that began in 2016.

The project will largely be funded with money from Madison Street Tax Increment Finance District. The electric car-charging stations are estimated to cost $75,000 and will be funded through the village's parking fund.

In 2016, the village spent $630,900 on repairs to the underground parking garage, the driveway in front of village hall and the pedestrian bridge that runs between the surface parking lot and the building.

One of the reasons for the very low amount of returned bids (just 1) is that the construction industry is overwhelmed with requests for projects (a good economic sign). At the Park District we have seen similar results. And, the bids are coming in higher than what we budgeted. Sometimes you take what you can get - as long as the firm that did bid is reputable. Otherwise, go back out for another bid.

Bill Dwyer Facebook Verified

Posted: October 10th, 2018 12:32 PM

There is nothing "amiss" here. The request for bids was publicly noticed. September 06, 2018 Village Hall Parking Lot Improvement's PROJECT NO. 18-16 VILLAGE OF OAK PARK PUBLIC WORKS CENTER 201 SOUTH BLVD COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS BID DATE: 10:00 AM, September 13, 2018 . For anyone who cares to be informed, go to https://www.oak-park.us/your-government/budget-purchasing/requests-proposals.

Ramona Lopez Facebook Verified

Posted: October 10th, 2018 11:48 AM

Something seems amiss here. Why only 1 bid on a government funded project? Did the village do their due diligence and actively promote and pursue other bids?

Kline Maureen Facebook Verified

Posted: October 10th, 2018 10:01 AM

LOL, there's voting in spring 2019 as well for LOCAL elections... (regarding this quote from above "While the project is being bid this year the construction would not occur until the spring of 2019," Village Manager Cara Pavlicek told trustees at the Oct. 1 meeting. "We have a number of busy activities this fall including early voting that occurs at village hall." ) How inconvenient!

Mike Hanline Facebook Verified

Posted: October 10th, 2018 8:35 AM

Let's just kill two taxpayers with one stone and put the pool in the village hall parking lot instead.

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